Gwen Stefani finds Facebook and Twitter "comforting" but admits she was initially "embarrassed" by how much of a bragging platform it was.

The 'What You Waiting For' hitmaker admits she was initially "embarrassed" by the likes of Facebook and Twitter because of its nature as a bragging platform but believes it has evolved to have a good effect on people's lives.

She said: "When [social media] first started, it felt really embarrassing, like you're shouting out yourself so much. [Before social media], the people that we loved, they were very mysterious.

"Society has changed a lot. I think that people feel real good about tapping into everybody's life [with social media], and there's something comforting about that."

Meanwhile, the 46-year-old singer also spoke about "staying true to herself" through her music.

In an interview with social media site LinkedIn, she added: "By staying true to yourself and your beliefs through work, the overall process can be very therapeutic. With my current record, 'This Is What The Truth Feels Like', I had a huge wave of inspiration and just went in and recorded song after song. Music can be extremely powerful, especially when writing about your own life. There's purity in that.

"With No Doubt, we made the type of music that was honest to us. We were playing together in a garage in Anaheim. We had no clue that we would ever become a known band! It was all about the process of being together, creating music together. You always want to feel proud, comfortable and honest with what you create."